Carla
Carpenter and Joiner
See what a real apprentice has to say about working in the construction industry.
At a glance
RoleCarpenter and Joiner
Aged: 19
Subject of study: I’m studying for a Carpentry and Joinery Level 3 apprenticeship at South Birmingham College through CITB-ConstructionSkills.
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Which company do you work for?
I work for Morrison Facility Services and they do council house
maintenance and repairs.
What do you do day-to-day?
In my day job I do more than carpentry, I also make and fit
doors and also do bits of plastering, plumbing, tiling and floor
tiling - all different things really. I just love being able to do
my own thing really - going out and leaving my own little stamp
everywhere.
What's the coolest thing you've done so
far?
The best thing I've done and the thing I'm most proud of in the
last three years is a Level 3 practical exam which is a hipped
roof, simply because I got to build it from scratch.
What are the good bits about your job?
What I like most about my apprenticeship is being able to learn
on the job, the same thing that I'm learning at college. My
employers do push me a lot - to keep going and going and going and
saying 'what are you doing next?' They're the questions you get all
the time.
What would you say to anyone who wanted to try
this?
If you're thinking of doing it just get up and do it. Don't
think about it, do it!
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
In 10 years I'd like to be a contracts manager. A contracts
manager is somebody that oversees the contracts of a big
organisation, makes sure that everything's going right, making
people do what they're supposed to do really.
What's it like being a female on site?
I like to think it's good that I'm doing something different,
not something that all girls do, a bit out of the ordinary. In the
workplace being female hasn't really mattered to me because they
treat me like one of them, one of the lads, looking out for me all
the time.
I think it's definitely something that girls should think about
doing more, because it's not that they're not able to, it's just
that they're a bit scared. I think you have to walk in, you have to
keep your head high and prove that you deserve to be there.